The Lord Londesborough | |
|---|---|
 Lord Londesborough in 2021, official photo | |
| Member of theHouse of Lords | |
Lord Temporal | |
| In office 8 April 1996 – 11 November 1999 as ahereditary peer | |
| Preceded by | The 8th Baron Londesborough |
| Succeeded by | Seat abolished [a] |
| Assumed office 23 June 2021 as anelected hereditary peer | |
| Preceded by | The 31st Countess of Mar |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Richard John Denison (1959-07-02)2 July 1959 (age 66) |
| Political party | None (crossbench) |
Richard John Denison, 9th Baron Londesborough (born 2 July 1959), is an entrepreneur, investor in start-ups andCrossbench member of theHouse of Lords.
Londesborough was a journalist and foreign correspondent in Iran (1978) and Mexico (1982) before setting up from his kitchen table a specialist informational service, Latin America Monitor, with fellow journalist Jonathan Feroze in 1984.
Londesborough took his seat as a crossbench member of the House of Lords in 1999, and made his maiden/valedictory speech just one week before being excluded by theHouse of Lords Act 1999.[1]
He became a member of the Lords again in June 2021, having been elected by the whole House in aby-election following the retirement of theCountess of Mar.[2] After a gap of 22 years, Lord Londesborough spoke again in the Lords, touching on his first maiden speech and foreign aid on 27 October 2021.[3]
He speaks regularly on the economy, business, entrepreneurship, sport andsmall and medium enterprises, and was appointed to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee in 2023.
He caused controversy in 2023 during a debate onartificial intelligence, by raising the prospect that members of the House of Lords might be replaced by "peerbots with deeper knowledge, higher productivity and lower running costs."
Londesborough married Rikki (née Morris) in 1987. They have a son and a daughter, and live on Richmond Hill in west London.
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Baron Londesborough 1968–present Member of theHouse of Lords (1996–1999) | Incumbent Heir apparent: Hon. James Denison |
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Elected hereditary peer to theHouse of Lords under theHouse of Lords Act 1999 2021–present | Incumbent |
